Here's why you should never sleep in your bra

Picture the scene. It’s Friday night and after going for "just one drink" after work, you eventually tumble through the door in the early hours and you’re so, so tired. Too tired to take off your make up, or brush your teeth, and as for removing your clothes, well forget about it.

There are plenty of old wives tales floating around the Internet about wearing a bra to bed. Some believe it can stop your lady lumps heading south, while others think sleeping in a boulder holder is actually a cause of sagging.

So what’s the truth? Does wearing your bra in the sack have an impact on the perkiness of your boobs and more importantly will it have an effect on your health?

Well according to one expert saggy boobies are an inevitable part of the ageing process, and sleeping in your bra will have little impact on preventing the big droop. What’s more the garment could actually restrict the lymph glands, which help to flush toxins from the breasts.

“So wearing a bra (the purpose of which is ultimately to support breasts from below) is essentially redundant in bed, as breasts naturally compress back down onto the chest.”

Source: Giphy

Ok so it seems that pulling an all-nighter with our lingerie isn’t going to do much to stop the sagginess, but what about the effect on our health when we’re just too drunk tired to take it off?

According to Dr Rankin the news here isn’t quite so good as sleeping in a bra could have a negative effect on both our skin and bodily functions.

“With regard to the breast tissue itself: if your bra often leaves impressions in your skin from being too tight, then wearing it 24/7 won’t give the skin a chance to recover and bounce back from these, leading to long-term indents in the tissue,” explains Dr Rankin.

This can have more wide reaching consequences because of the fact there is a lot of important anatomy around the chest area including muscles, lymph nodes and nerves and wearing a bra in bed can restrict the blood supply to the breasts and surrounding areas.

It's tempting to fall into bed with your clothes on sometimes, but experts warn against leaving your bra on to sleep. Photo: Getty images

“The same goes for the lymphatic system: a tight bra may restrict the flow of lymph to the many important lymph nodes around the breast and armpit, hindering the system’s vital function of flushing toxic waste-products from the body,” Dr Rankin continues.

So next time you’re tempted to have a sleep-over with your bra, you might be best to take a rain check, especially if its underwired.

Not only will you likely get a better night’s kip, but your boobs, and in fact your whole body, will thank you for it.